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June 26th, 2018

Legislative Newsletter - Edition 096

Plea bargaining: fuel for reelection

The central point, the creation of Investigation Parliamentary Committee that will investigate plea bargaining.

Legislative Newsletter - Edition 096

Tension still high in the House of Representatives even after Truckers’ strike, lack of fuel supply in all States, and the vote for load transportation landmark, the topic of the moment is the creation of Investigation Parliamentary Committee (CPI) that will investigate plea bargaining[1].

The President of the House of Representatives, Mr. Rodrigo Maia, in agreement with the opposition allowed the creation of this Committee, and for that it was presented the Request for CPI Institution (RCP) 43/2018 that was signed by 190 congressmen from the base and opposition. The objective of this request is to investigate complaints of irregularities against Mr. Antonio Figueiredo Basto, including law firms, that occurred in the Lava Jato Operation. However, even with the agreement among congressmen, 59 of the subscribers - from the support base - that had already signed the request, withdrew their signatures to halt the CPI. The objective – to halt the Committee - was not successful once it is necessary to have 50% plus one of the signatures withdrawn to cancel the requirement installation, which would require an additional of 37 signatures to be withdrawn to halt the CPI.

The central point of discussion among the ones against the creation of the CPI is the attack to the Lava Jato Operation. The internal policy of the House of Representatives states according to Article 35, the necessity to inform a determined fact. However, the request expands investigation power of the CPI when it affirms that “the objective of the CPI will extend to irregularities in other investigations.” The ones defending the CPI, on the other hand, highlight the necessity of the CPI creation with the fact that there are law firms charging US$50K, specially Mr. Antonio Figueiredo Basto and Luiz Gustavo Rodrigues, as a protection fee not to be reported.

In this scenario, one more tense week in the House of Representatives with some supporting the investigation regarding the protection fee charged by attorneys not to be reported in the denunciation, and others stating that it is necessary to adequate the text of the CPI, so it investigates a determined fact, not a generic one. Nevertheless, another politic stage in an election year and thus one more subject for candidates to debate in favor of their reelection.

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[1] Plea bargaining is a benefit given to the collaborators that effectively help with the result of the criminal investigation by identifying the criminals, revealing the hierarchic structure of the organization, recovering the product of the crime and revealing the location of victims, all of this to prevent criminal offence, following the model of Article 4 of Law n.º 12.850/2013.